Willamette Industries, Inc. has received independent third-party certification that its forest management practices are in compliance with standards of the American Forest & Paper Assn.’s (AF&PA) Sustainable Forestry Initiative. Willamette’s 610,000 acres of Oregon forestlands were audited in mid-September by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The company will receive unqualified opinion when the final report is released, meaning that the company’s Western timberlands are third-party certified to meet SFI standards.

Fred Stimpson III has his hands full. He prefers it that way. In addition to serving as President of highly respected Gulf Lumber Co., Inc. and managing partner of Stimpson Forest Products, LLC, the 49-year-old Stimpson devotes an amazing amount of energy to issues that impact the well-being of the forest products industry, particularly the close-knit independent sector which is composed of family-owned ­operations.

It’s a problem that cuts into the forest products industry where so many large independent family operations are three and four generations deep. But frankly, as Gulf Lumber Co. President Fred Stimpson says, “It is a threat to all people, inside and outside this industry, who accumulate capital.” Stimpson, this magazine’s 2000 Man of the Year, is referring to the estate or inheritance tax, or as those such as himself who are leading the charge to repeal it call it, “The Death Tax.”

Burton Hankins, owner of Hankins Lumber Co., based here since 1950, has always had incredible foresight. Moving up through the ranks in sawmilling during the last 50 years, the 69-year-old has learned a lot about the art of outfitting productive lumber facilities. The mill has reached more than 83MMBF of southern yellow pine production, one shift, annually by staying abreast of technological advancements that have increased production and given the plant the most recovery available.

At Timber Products Co.’s hardwood sawmill/veneer manufacturing complex here, the name of the game is efficiency. Whether it’s maximizing production and yield out of a purchase of logs, or streamlining a process in the mill to improve productivity, Timber Products is continually striving for maximum efficiency. The complex’s set-up lends itself to efficiency in the form of merchandising logs that are purchased.

The pallet industry is changing, as the owner of Cardinal Pallet will attest to. But Thomas Murrihy Sr. and his son, Thomas Murrihy Jr., believe their company has enough strong points to adapt to change. They’re eager to see the new business climate as the dawning of a new era, rather than just the twilight of the old way of doing business. Reputation is one of the key strengths, they say.

The Green Team was on to something big, and like lawyers who had just been handed a crucial piece of evidence, they conferred around the table with a mixture of serious concentration and restrained excitement. Occasionally one would glance quickly around the room to see who might be approaching, then return their gaze to the map lying on the table before them.